Sunday, May 8, 2016

Estate agent recommends installing the warning devices as the safety of tenants should be ‘utmost priority’

The following article is about having carbon monoxide devices installed in rented properties. It has been the law since the beginning of October 2015 to have an alarm fitted in a rented property by the landlord if it contains a solid fuel burning appliance. There is a belief that a room sealed boiler gas boiler cannot cause harm by carbon monoxide poisoning but this is false. Even room sealed boilers can leak carbon monoxide if there is a fault. Read the following carbon monoxide articles to find out more.
Estate agent recommends installing the warning devices as the safety of tenants should be ‘utmost priority’

Dawn says if you have a gas boiler, as well as having it regularly checked, you should fit a carbon monoxide alarm

I want to raise awareness of the need for landlords to fit carbon monoxide alarms in their properties if they have a gas boiler or appliances fitted. Private sector landlords have been required by law since October 1, 2015, to have an alarm in any room containing a solid fuel burning appliance – that could be a coal fire or a wood burning stove.

Given most apartments in Canary Wharf with gas do not have such appliances, the need for the CO sensors has not been seen as a must, rather as a personal choice.

While some of my more cautious and responsible landlords have fitted them as standard, others have chosen to save their pennies, given it’s not a requirement.

However, following a recent incident I would urge any landlord that has gas and does not have one to have one fitted to do so as soon as possible.

Responding to an emergency call-out late one evening my contractor attended one of my managed properties that had a CO alarm fitted as it had gone off.

On arrival there was a strong smell of gas and it was apparent the boiler was leaking.

The contractor shut this down immediately and refused to turn it back on. The landlord was notified and a new boiler was fitted the next day.

The point of sharing this story with you is there were no solid fuel burner at this property so, had there been no CO alarm, the results could have been tragic.

Being a landlord brings with it a huge responsibility and the safety of your tenants has to be the utmost priority.

An interested article that should give a wake up call to landlords to always install a carbon monoxide detector. However, as we can see from the news story below, just having an alarm isn’t always enough. They also should be checked on a regular basis. The article below is one of a tragedy that could have been avoided.
The young girl hospitalized last week from carbon monoxide exposure in her home, which had killed her brother, is recovering and responding to treatment, according to the girl’s mother who spoke at a vigil held for her son Saturday evening.
Crowd gathers at vigil for third-grader killed by carbon monoxide fumes At St. Mark’s Park on Essex Avenue, in Linden, on Saturday, May 7, 2016, roughly 250 people gathered at a vigil for Oshiobugie Asekomhe, the 9-year-old boy who was killed by carbon monoxide exposure in his home earlier in the week. (Spencer Kent |…

At St. Mark’s Park on Essex Avenue, roughly 250 people gathered at the vigil for Oshiobugie Asekomhe, the 9-year-old boy who was killed from carbon monoxide exposure in his home on Tuesday.

His mother, Sepiatu Abu, 45, said her daughter, 11-year-old Emike Asekomhe, was still in the hospital, but was responding to treatment.

Abu, who was with her two sisters, arrived toward the end of the vigil, and with tears running down her face, she thanked everyone for their support.

“Right now my daughter is doing very good … compared to when the incident happened, said Sepiatu Abu, 45, of Linden. “She’s doing much better.”

She added, “She’s responding good to treatment.”

During the vigil, the crowd stood in a semi-circle on the basketball court at the park, and while holding lit candles, they prayed, and then collectively sang Amazing Grace.

The crowd included local officials, including the mayor, along with police officers, firefighters, school officials, members of the community, and some of Oshiobugie’s teachers and classmates at School No. 4, where teachers said he excelled.

People were crying, hugging, and trying to reconcile the shock of losing such a beloved boy in the community.

Linden will hold a vigil Saturday for the 9-year-old youth who died from carbon monoxide in his home Tuesday

“So happy to see everybody out here to support us. I really appreciate each and every one of them. Because my son, Oshiobugie, really was a good kid. He was a very loving child, intelligent, easy going, and I pray God keeps him in a better place.”

At around 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday Abu called police and said her children were unresponsive, police said in a previous report. Abu, according to officials, had tried CPR on both children. Oshiobugie was later pronounced dead at a hospital.

High levels of carbon monoxide were found in the home. Though there was a CO detector, the batteries were no longer functional, the report said. The house is uninhabitable, according to the report.

A very sad story and one that is difficult to read. Our thoughts go out to the mother and family of the children involved and we hope that with more education, these stories become a thing of the past. Visit the CO gas resource page for further help.